Method and apparatus for dynamically processing events based on automatic detection of time conflicts

ABSTRACT

A scheduling apparatus, system, and article including a machine-accessible medium, along with a method of dynamically processing events, are disclosed. The apparatus may include a receiving module capable of receiving information associated with an event. The information may include an event name and event time. The apparatus may also include a memory capable of storing the information associated with the event, and being communicatively coupled with the receiving module. The memory may be used to store a plurality of schedule items, at least one of which may be associated with an item time. The method may include selecting an event associated with a transaction and event time, determining whether a conflict exists, and adjusting the set of events stored in the memory to include the information associated with the event if no conflict is found.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a Continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.10/000,904 titled “Method and Apparatus for Dynamically AdjustingElectronic Schedules Based on Automatic Detection of Time Conflicts,”which was filed on Nov. 15, 2001. This application is entirelyincorporated by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to apparatus and methods usedfor scheduling. More particularly, the present invention relates to theuse of purchased goods to trigger adjustments to electronic schedules.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

Individual electronic schedules have become as common as the existenceof personal computers. Most desktop computers include some type ofpersonal scheduling software package, as do the increasingly popularpalm-top generation of computers. However, the included schedulingpackages are typically quite primitive, merely used to record whateveris placed into them by the hand of the user. More advanced schedulingpackages offer the ability to cross-schedule between networked users,detecting conflicts and locating personnel based on shared information.

Given the current state of scheduling software, consumers attempting toschedule their time in conjunction with the purchase of theatre tickets,for example, must consult personal planners, or palm-top computers toverify the existence of available dates and times. Open schedule periodsare manually compared with potential event dates. Errors, such asmistaking one month for the next, or one date for another, often occur,due to the exigency of the purchase. Finally, consumers may simply failto enter information associated with the purchase which may be needed ata later time. Such forgotten items may include seat reservationinformation, a map of the facility, or a directory of on-site services.

Therefore, there is a need in the art for an apparatus, an articleincluding a machine-accessible medium, a system, and a method ofadjusting a schedule based on the purchase of goods or servicesassociated with such a purchase. The ability to automatically adjust ormodify a schedule based on a timed event should be provided to reducethe possibility of human error. Further, revisions of the purchaseshould be allowed to accommodate schedule conflicts, along with theoption of conveying additional related information to the consumer whichmay be useful at the time of the event (e.g., travel information).

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an apparatus, an article including amachine-accessible medium, and a system according to various embodimentsof the present invention; and

FIG. 2 is flow chart illustrating a method of adjusting a scheduleaccording to an embodiment of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

In the following detailed description of the invention, reference ismade to the accompanying drawings which form a part hereof, and in whichare shown by way of illustration, and not of limitation, specificembodiments in which the invention may be practiced. In the drawings,like numerals describe substantially similar components throughout theseveral views. The embodiments illustrated are described in sufficientdetail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the invention.Other embodiments may be utilized and derived therefrom, such thatstructural and logical substitutions and changes may be made withoutdeparting from the scope of the invention. The following detaileddescription, therefore, is not to be taken in a limiting sense, and thescope of the invention is defined only by the appended claims, alongwith the full range of equivalents to which such claims are entitled.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an apparatus, an article including amachine-accessible medium, and a system according to various embodimentsof the present invention. In one embodiment of the invention, thescheduling apparatus 100 may include a memory 105 capable of beingcommunicatively coupled with a schedule receiving module 110. The memorymay be used to store a plurality of schedule items 115, each of whichmay be associated with a name 116, date 117, and an item time 118, whichmay further include an item start time and an item end time. Forexample, item “Y” may be associated with the item name “BREAKFAST”, adate of Jun. 1, 2001, a start time of 0900, and an end time of 1200. Ofcourse, those skilled in the art will realize that the date(s) 117 andtimes 118 during which a particular schedule item occurs may beincorporated into a single item “time” 118 (e.g. a “time” of 0001 may bea coded time which means an item is scheduled to occur on Jan. 1, 2001,from 0800 to 1000), into both start and end times (e.g. a “start time”of 0001 may be a coded time which means the scheduled item starts onJan. 1, 2001 at 0800, and an “end time” may be a coded time which meansthe scheduled item ends on Jan. 1, 2001 at 1000), or kept separatelyfrom timing information, as shown herein. The schedule items 115 storedin the memory 105 may also include other associated elements 119, suchas item location/mapping information, seating availability and parkinginformation, the location and cost of nearby services (e.g., beveragesales, or restaurants), house rules (no flash photography, cell phonesturned off), musician's web site address, advertising and marketing(e.g., Purchase a CD of tonight's performance by calling 123-4567.),etc.

The schedule receiving module 110 is capable of automatically receivingschedule update information 120, perhaps as transmitted by aninformation repository, such as a vendor's server or point of sale (POS)device 125. Of course, the update information 120 may also as entered bya user of the apparatus 100, perhaps with a keypad, microphone, stylus,or other data entry device. The update information 120 is typicallyassociated with a purchase transaction and at least one event 130, andmay include an event name 135 (e.g., event A may be named “CIRCUS”), anevent date 140 (e.g., for event A the date may be “Jun. 1, 2001”), andan event time 145, which may include an event start time (e.g., forevent A the start time may be “1400”) and an event end time (e.g., forevent A the end time may be “1600”). Of course, the event time 145 mayinclude coded date and/or start/end timing information, as noted abovewith respect to schedule items 115. Other informative 150, similar to oridentical to any or all of the associated elements 119 described withrespect to schedule items 115, may be associated with the event andincluded in the update information 120.

The scheduling apparatus 100 may also include a conflict determinationmodule 155 capable of being coupled to the memory 115. The conflictdetermination module 155 is capable of determining the existence of aschedule conflict between an event time (e.g., the start and end times145 of an event 135 transmitted to the apparatus 100 in the scheduleupdate information 120) and scheduled item times (e.g., the date, startand end times of items 115 previously stored in the memory 105).

The apparatus 100 may also include a schedule transmission module 160capable of being coupled to the memory 105. The transmission module iscapable of sending a message 165, including information regarding theexistence of a schedule conflict 167, to the POS 125.

For example, assume that a user of the apparatus 100 attempts topurchase a ticket from a vendor of tickets to a nearby circus. Theapparatus 100 may have schedule item 115 information regarding event “Y”stored in the memory 105 for a “BREAKFAST” on Jun. 1, 2001, starting at0900 and ending at 1200 at a “HOME” location. If the user of theapparatus 100 wishes to attend the event “A”, which is a “CIRCUS”occurring on the same day, from 0800 to 1000, a schedule conflictexists. If the event schedule update information 120 is sent to theapparatus 100, this conflict may be detected by the conflictdetermination module 155, and a message 165 including information aboutthe conflict 167 may be sent from the apparatus 100 to the POS device125.

In return, the conflict information message 165 may be received by thePOS device 125, and another message, containing alternative scheduleupdate information 170 associated with the event 130 (e.g., event “A”)including an alternative event timing, such as an alternative eventstart time (e.g., 1400) and an alternative event end time (e.g., 1600).As noted above, the alternative event time information may include codeddate and time information, or separate date/time start/end information.

In another embodiment of the invention, a scheduling system 175 mayinclude a POS device 125 which has schedule update information 180associated with various events 130 including event names 135, eventdates 140 and/or times 145 (possibly including coded date and/orstart/end times). The system 175 may also include a scheduling apparatus100, which is capable of being communicatively coupled to the POS device125, perhaps by making use of a medium 185, such as an electronicconductor, an optical conductor, an electromagnetic wave, or acombination of these. Any protocol may be used, including thosespecified in the Bluetooth™ (e.g., “Bluetooth System Specification,”Bluetooth Special Interest Group, Ver. 1.1, March 2001) and Infra-redData Association (IrDA) standards (e.g., the “Infrared Data AssociationMinimal IrDA Protocol Implementation,” Counterpoint Systems Foundry,Inc., Ver. 1.0, Nov. 6, 1996). As previously described, the apparatus100 may include a schedule receiving module 110 and a memory 105 (whichmay be used to store a plurality of schedule items 115, schedule updateinformation 120, and/or the alternative schedule update information170).

The POS device 125 may include a memory 190 for storing the eventinformation 180, or the event information 180′ may be stored in aninformation repository, such as a memory 190′ separate and apart fromthe POS device 125. For example, the memory 190′ may be co-located withan event sponsor. The memory 190, 190′ may be dedicated to the device125, or merely capable of being communicatively coupled with it, such asby using a medium 195 (similar to or identical to the medium 185).

The information 180 may be stored in any number of ways, well known tothose skilled in the art, such as by storing the information 180 so thateach event 130 has other data elements 140, 145, and 150 associated withthe event name 135. Other information 150, such as location/mappinginformation (e.g., a map of the event location), pricing information forthe event or local services, and/or seating information, etc. may alsobe associated with the event name 135 and stored in the memory 190,190′.

It should be noted that the memories 105, 190, 190′; the schedulereceiving module 110; the conflict determination module 155; and theschedule transmission module 160 may all be characterized as “modules”herein. Such modules may include hardware circuitry, such as amicroprocessor and/or memory circuits, software program modules, and/orfirmware, and combinations thereof, as desired by the architect of theapparatus 100 and system 175, and appropriate for particularimplementations of the invention.

One of ordinary skill in the art will understand that the schedulingapparatus and system of the present invention can be used inapplications other than for apparatus such as handheld computers, andsystems which include networked servers or POS devices, and thus, theinvention is not to be so limited. The illustrations of a schedulingapparatus 100 and a scheduling system 175 are intended to provide ageneral understanding of the structure of the present invention, and arenot intended to serve as a complete description of all the elements andfeatures of scheduling apparatus and systems which might make use of thestructures described herein.

Applications which may include the novel scheduling apparatus and systemof the present invention include electronic circuitry used in high-speedcomputers, communication and signal processing circuitry, modems,processor modules, embedded processors, and application-specificmodules, including multilayer, multi-chip modules. Such schedulingapparatus and system may further be included as sub-components within avariety of electronic systems, such as televisions, cellular telephones,personal computers, radios, vehicles, and others.

FIG. 2 is a flow chart illustrating a method of adjusting a scheduleaccording to an embodiment of the present invention. The method 222 mayinclude initiating a purchase transaction, such as attempting to buytickets for an event at block 224. The method 222 may continue withselecting an event associated with the purchase transaction at block228. The selected event is typically associated with schedule updateinformation, such as the event name and time, which may further includean event date, an event start time, and an event end time.

The method 222 may then proceed with receiving the schedule updateinformation at block 234, and possibly, other associated information atblock 238. For example, if the event is a basketball game, theassociated information may include seating and parking information.Thus, if there is a relatively small amount of associated information,it may be downloaded to the user along with the event time data as partof the update information. The associated information may also bedownloaded later, after there is more assurance that the purchasetransaction will ultimately be completed.

The method 222 may then continue with determining whether a scheduleconflict exists between the event time (e.g., the event start and endtimes for the selected event) and the item time (e.g., the item startand end times) associated with a schedule item which already exists inthe user schedule at block 244. If no conflict exists, then the purchasetransaction may be completed at block 248, and other informationassociated with the event may be received at block 254 (e.g. theinformation discussed with respect to block 238 and/or more lengthytransmissions, such as images of the event or sound clips of performersat the event, etc.). Of course, non-time related information (e.g. amap, pricing, and/or seating information associated with the event name)may also be received at blocks 238 and 254, according to the desires ofthose implementing the method 222 of the invention. The method 222 mayconclude with adjusting the schedule to include the schedule updateinformation if a schedule conflict is determined not to exist at block258.

If a schedule conflict is detected at block 244, the scheduled party (ora user of the apparatus, such as apparatus 100 shown in FIG. 1) may benotified at block 264, using visual messaging, lighting, and/or audiomechanisms, such as displays, LEDs, speakers, or other transducers.Conflicts may be determined due to a direct event time conflict, asdiscussed above, or by analyzing other scheduled items, including theirlocation and nature, to determine whether travel time from a scheduleditem to a selected event result in a conflict.

For example, if a doctor's appointment exists as a scheduled item, andit is known that such appointments are regularly delayed an hour or morebeyond the scheduled start time, such delays may be taken intoconsideration, and an “indirect” conflict may be determined at block244. Thus, if an event is scheduled less than 90 minutes after the endof the scheduled doctor's appointment a conflict may be generated toaccount for appointment fulfillment delays, and travel time to theevent, given the location of the doctor's office and the event, derivedfrom associated elements and information stored in the memoriesdescribed above. Thus, more advanced versions of the invention may beable to consider time and distance information between scheduled events,blocking out travel time and alerting consumers to possible conflictsbased on the proximity (time and distance) of separate events andschedule items.

If a conflict exists, a determination can then be made at block 268 asto whether alternative events may be substituted for the selected event.If so, then alternative event time information, include alternativeevent start and end times, may be received at block 234. If noalternatives exist, as determined at block 268, then the transaction maybe canceled at block 274, and the method 222 may include refraining fromadjusting the schedule to include the schedule update information. Atthis time the method 222 may conclude, or may continue with selectinganother event associated with a purchase transaction at block 228.

Thus, referring back to FIG. 1, it is now easily understood that anotherembodiment of the invention may include an article 197, such as acomputer, a memory system, a magnetic or optical disk, some otherstorage device, and/or any type of electronic device or system,comprising a machine-accessible medium 105 (e.g., a memory including anelectrical, optical, or electromagnetic conductor) having associateddata 198 (e.g. computer program instructions), which when accessed,results in a machine performing such actions as selecting an eventassociated with a purchase transaction and schedule update information(including an event name, an event start time, and an event end time);receiving the schedule update information; determining whether aschedule conflict exists between the event time and item time(associated with a schedule item); and adjusting the schedule to includethe schedule update information if a schedule conflict does not exist.

The actions may further include refraining from adjusting the scheduleto include the schedule update information if a schedule conflictexists, notifying the user of the schedule conflict, and canceling thepurchase transaction.

The apparatus, system, article, and method of the invention provide anefficient mechanism whereby the user of a personal digital assistant(PDA) or other handheld computer, for example, may automatically updateschedule information to include useful event information in conjunctionwith a purchase transaction, such as buying airline tickets. Use of theinvention provides an opportunity to reduce the possibility of humanerror with regard to schedule conflicts, and accommodates alternativesto avoid such conflicts. The invention also provides the option ofautomatically conveying additional related information to the consumerwhich may be useful at the time of the event (e.g., travel information).Some versions of the invention may also consider time and distanceinformation between scheduled events, blocking out travel time andalerting consumers to conflicts based on the proximity (time anddistance) of separate events.

Although specific embodiments have been illustrated and describedherein, those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that anyarrangement which is calculated to achieve the same purpose may besubstituted for the specific embodiment shown. This disclosure isintended to cover any and all adaptations or variations of the presentinvention. It is to be understood that the above description has beenmade in an illustrative fashion, and not a restrictive one. Combinationsof the above embodiments, and other embodiments not specificallydescribed herein will be apparent to those of skill in the art uponreviewing the above description. The scope of the invention includes anyother applications in which the above structures and methods are used.The scope of the invention should be determined with reference to theappended claims, along with the full range of equivalents to which suchclaims are entitled.

1-20. (canceled)
 21. A handheld electronic device capable of wirelesscommunication with a point of sale system, the handheld electronicdevice comprising: memory; at least one module capable of generating,based at least in part upon user input, schedule related information forstorage in the memory, the user input being received, at least in part,via a microphone of the handheld electronic device; the schedule relatedinformation being capable of including, for an associated schedule item,name, start time, end time, date, and associated information; theassociated information being capable of including: location informationassociated with the associated schedule item; and travel timeinformation determined based at least in part upon the locationinformation; the at least one module being capable of providing at leastone alert based at least in part upon the travel time information; andthe handheld electronic device being capable of transmitting a point ofsale-related communication via the wireless communication.
 22. Thehandheld electronic device of claim 21, wherein: the at least one moduleis also capable of determining, at least in part, whether conflictexists between schedule items.
 23. The handheld electronic device ofclaim 21, wherein: the associated information also includes, at least inpart, at least one of: map data; seating information; and pricinginformation.
 24. The handheld electronic device of claim 21, wherein:the handheld electronic device comprises a cellular telephone.
 25. Thehandheld electronic device of claim 21, wherein: the handheld electronicdevice comprises a handheld computer.
 26. The handheld electronic deviceof claim 21, wherein: the at least one module comprises a plurality ofsoftware modules.
 27. The handheld electronic device of claim 21,wherein: the at least one module comprises at least one of: at least onesoftware module; and at least one firmware module.
 28. The handheldelectronic device of claim 21, wherein: the handheld electronic deviceis capable of communicating in accordance with a BluetoothSpecification.
 29. The handheld electronic device of claim 21, wherein:the associated information is provided, at least in part, by at leastone remote server.
 30. The handheld electronic device of claim 21,wherein: the purchase transaction is related to an event ticket.
 31. Thehandheld electronic device of claim 21, wherein: the locationinformation indicates an event location.
 32. Machine-accessible memorystoring program instructions that when executed by a machine result inperformance of operations, comprising: generating by at least onemodule, based at least in part upon user input, schedule relatedinformation for storage in memory of a handheld electronic device, theuser input being received, at least in part, via a microphone of thehandheld electronic device, the handheld electronic device being capableof wireless communication with a point of sale system; the schedulerelated information being capable of including, for an associatedschedule item, name, start time, end time, date, and associatedinformation; the associated information being capable of including:location information associated with the associated schedule item; andtravel time information determined based at least in part upon thelocation information; the at least one module being capable of providingat least one alert based at least in part upon the travel timeinformation; and the handheld electronic device being capable oftransmitting a point of sale-related communication via the wirelesscommunication.
 33. The machine-accessible memory of claim 32, wherein:the at least one module is also capable of determining, at least inpart, whether conflict exists between schedule items.
 34. Themachine-accessible memory of claim 32, wherein: the associatedinformation also includes, at least in part, at least one of: map data;seating information; and pricing information.
 35. The machine-accessiblememory of claim 32, wherein: the handheld electronic device comprises acellular telephone.
 36. The machine-accessible memory of claim 32,wherein: the handheld electronic device comprises a handheld computer.37. The machine-accessible memory of claim 32, wherein: the at least onemodule comprises a plurality of software modules.
 38. Themachine-accessible memory of claim 32, wherein: the at least one modulecomprises at least one of: at least one software module; and at leastone firmware module.
 39. The machine-accessible memory of claim 32,wherein: the handheld electronic device is capable of communicating inaccordance with a Bluetooth Specification.
 40. The machine-accessiblememory of claim 32, wherein: the associated information is provided, atleast in part, by at least one remote server.
 41. The machine-accessiblememory of claim 32, wherein: the purchase transaction is related to anevent ticket.
 42. The machine-accessible memory of claim 32, wherein:the location information indicates an event location.